Kara & John:

Kara and John met online, after Kara responded to his first comment of “I love to be a regular at places too, I go to my favorite breakfast spots and sit and read the New York Times.” How could Kara not respond to someone who loved to read and be a regular at places? Their first date was at the Elbow Room in Shadyside, because it had just reopened, and John as a lifelong Pittsburgher had to show a non-Pittsburgher what a traditional and classic Pittsburgh restaurant the Elbow Room was.

They sat for several hours talking, and John impressed Kara with his knowledge about almost every topic possible: including knowledge of Pittsburgh’s history with urban planning. John just really enjoyed the fact that it was a really easy, fun conversation, and that they had similar backgrounds.

After that day, they didn’t spend much time apart. Over a shared love of baseball, food, cooking, and Pittsburgh itself, their relationship developed. Kara now has been to every important Italian restaurant in the city and John has now heard about every fiction book that is worth reading, in Kara’s opinion.

John took Kara away to Falling Water for an afternoon. They had been talking about Frank Lloyd Wright, and John’s interest in architecture, and Kara had never been. Kara kind of had an idea that the proposal might be happening, but after the whole house tour and the regular overlook of the house, Kara thought she had called it wrong and it wasn’t happening that day.

They kept walking through the woods and at another lookout that many people don’t know about, John and Kara talked about the beauty that is the house, and what kind of house they would one day have together. John said “well one day, we will have a house together, but right now I’m hungry.” Out of his pocket he pulled a Ruffles bag, and immediately Kara knew. The ring box was in the chip bag, and the rest is history.